14 Educational iPhone Apps Parents Should Know About

If you’re a parent like me, making the most out of any screen time is something you have to attack with relentless pursuit. Instead of letting our kids become TV or game device zombies, there’s an alternative in today’s tech-dominated world.

With hundreds of thousands of apps being sold in the iTunes app store, there’s got to be a handful of great educational app, right?

Well, I was relieved and excited when I found out that there are in fact a bunch of really good educational apps available to choose from.

Here’s a selection of educational apps that fellow parents, teachers and app developers themselves have tipped me off about so that you can go straight to the App Store and start download these apps for your kids. . .

1. UnblockMe – Problem-Solving and Spatial Awareness by Play

When I was a child, I loved playing a simple wooden game that my grandfather had built from scrap wood. Within a wooden frame on a flat board, there were rectangular pieces that you could slide to move one particular piece from a starting place to a finishing place. I learned problem solving skills and spatial awareness as I bent my mind around those blocks of wood.Now my six-year-old does the same thing on my iPod Touch as we ride the bus together. The pieces are virtual instead of wooden, but the app counts the number of moves you take to reach the goal (fewer is better); and once you’ve mastered one configuration, you can move on to another, and another and another.She loves it; and she is constantly learning to solve problems.

…and Glow Unblock

This game is great for the 6+ crowd. Each level encounters a new set of blocks that can only be moved vertically or horizontally — you solve the puzzle by creating a way to get the red block across the screen and through the exit on the other side.Kids will be addicted to this game that uses geometry and spatial awareness. And guess what? It’s Free! UnblockMe will give you hundreds of levels to play – you can download Glow Unblock if you want a coolio looking version.

2. Who Am I? Race Awareness Game

There are many apps out there to help kids read or do math. But there is only ONE app out there that is designed to make learning and thinking about race and diversity engaging for young children.This app is a fun two-player “guess who” type game using real life pictures that represent a diversity of people. The adult picks a picture and the child asks questions to narrow down the choices until a guess can be made.

But parents have a hard time talking about race, don’t they? That’s why the app gives practical tips for discussing these issues in the game and beyond. It’s new and revolutionary and should not be missed. Developed by a Harvard University cultural anthropologist – this will help parents as much as children!

3. Words with Friends

If you’re familiar with the game of Scrabble, you already know the basics behind Words with Friends, which takes the crossword combat game format one step further by turning it into a very simple, easy to use multiplayer game.For kids, the game is a great opportunity to delve into the English language and learn new words, all while playing with family and peers. Many players report having increased their vocabulary and enhanced their strategizing skills after extended play.Most importantly, not only is the game educational, but it is highly entertaining and addicting, ensuring that children keep coming back to it again and again.

4. FlipCards-Spanish … Audio, Virtual Flashcards

I’m a bilingual mother of five children, a Spanish teacher, and curriculum author of Flip Flop Spanish. My passion is helping each individual, young or old, discover his or her best method for learning, and I have found those methods through teaching the most elusive of subjects – Foreign Languages.FlipCards Spanish was born out of my years of experience in guiding students on their bilingual journey.The App teaches Spanish with sight, audio, and tactile learning styles in mind. You can check “known” and “unknown” and even shuffle the cards by shaking! Children enjoy quizzing themselves and telling time in Spanish – treating the app just like regular flash cards, but they get to HEAR it too!

5. Chess with Friends

The centuries-old game of Chess is considered by many to be of great educational worth. The game strategy relies on problem-solving, critical thinking, decision making, concentration, all of which are qualities that will help children in their academic areas of education.Chess with Friends puts the game in an easy to use multiplayer format, where you can have several games going on at once with friends and family. The game resembles a digital version of chess by mail, where moves are made at your own pace, thus making it a great way for children to enjoy the game without interfering with their busy school schedule.

7. MeeGenius!

MeeGenius!: * Is a virtual children’s library; the app digitizes children’s classics – new and old – and brings them to life with features such as word highlighting, audio playback, and personalization of each story* Adds a whole new dimension to story time, making books fun and easy to read along with while also promoting reading comprehension skills
* Is reasonably priced at $1.99 for 12 introductory books and the option to purchase other books for an additional $1.99 each
* Was founded by entrepreneurial parents, Wandy Yeap Hoh and David Park, after 16 months of research and development. Yeap Hoh and Park met in 2005 and shared a dream to build a business by and for families that would educate and stimulate little imaginations.

8. Smarty Shortz for your smarty!

The best app for back to school season would probably be an all inclusive educational app (offering LESSONS AND GAMES) to brush up on all subjects (Geography, Spelling, Math, Reading, History and Science).Check out the app called Smarty Shortz, its content is for ages K-3rd grade and has 26 lessons (some challenging and some not as much) and 26 games.The lessons are quick which kids love and the games reinforce the lesson learned…it’s $1.99

9. Glow Puzzle Gets You To Connect The Dots

Here’s a game that gets the kids’ brains working, without them knowing it! You have to connect all the dots in the puzzle in a continuous path without reusing any of the connecting steps twice. This game makes you think out of the box for sure.The first 25 levels are free and you can buy two more ‘puzzle packs’ for $0.99 each — for a total of over 200 levels to keep your kids busy.

10. Fit It!

Fit It! is a geometric puzzle game. The kids have to drag the different shaped pieces onto the square grid playing space so that all the pieces fit together to make a complete square.The number of pieces and shapes increase with each level. There’s also an option to create your own puzzles too so that kids can challenge each other.

11. Sudoku4Kids Lite

Sudoku is one game that is sure to please some of the older kids in your family. This one has a 4×4 grid with both an EASY and MEDIUM difficulty level to play.Easy enough that some 6 year olds will have the patience to play it and hard enough that the big kids will be challenged at the harder levels.

12. iPuzzle Words

Cute word jumble game for kids learning to read and write. Letters of a word are mixed up out of order and you job is to click and drag the letters back into the correct order/spelling. The picture of the word is ixed-up with the letters to help the young one succeed in the end.The game lets you play both capital and lower case letters.

13. Dictionary.com

Dictionary.com is an essential back to school mobile app for elementary age children who are discovering new words everyday. Students will be better prepared with an on-the-go app that will enhance their understanding of vocabulary and give parents an edge when they sit down to help their children with homework every night.Recently named one of CNET’s Top 10 of the Top 100 apps, Dictionary.com has been installed on 15 million mobile devices and is available on iPhone, Blackberry, Android, iPad and more. With access to over 1 million words, with or without an internet connection you can be sure that your child will be getting access to one of the best, free educational apps available, making the fear of defining a word a thing of the past.

14. Stack the States

My name is Dan Russell-Pinson and I’m both a game developer and a Father of a six year old girl (who is also my beta tester). I wanted to make sure that you knew about my latest educational game called Stack the States.The goal for Stack the States was simple: make a educational game that is actually FUN to play. Stack the States combines dynamic gameplay, and colorful animated state characters to create a fun environment so kids will stay interested longer and ultimately learn more.Stack the States is expected to be released around September 10th (today). Here’s a sneak preview.